Court Halts Prosecution of NCBA Bank and CEO John Gachora Over Sh363 Million Fraud Case

NCBA Bank Kenya PLC and its Group Chief Executive Officer, John Gachora, have secured orders from the High Court in Nairobi temporarily stopping criminal proceedings brought against them in connection with a Sh363 million fraud case that has rattled Kenya’s banking sector in recent weeks.

The orders, issued at the Milimani High Court under Case Number HCCHRPET/E035/2026, grant conservatory relief staying all further action against the bank and its CEO in Nairobi Chief Magistrate’s Criminal Case No. E451 of 2026 — Republic versus Salim Mohamed Bussaidy and six others. The court also barred the Directorate of Criminal Investigations and any magistrate’s court from arresting, arraigning, or otherwise proceeding against the petitioners pending a full hearing of their application.

The underlying criminal case centres on the alleged theft of more than Sh363 million from First Assurance Investment Company Limited, funds prosecutors say were siphoned out through accounts held at NCBA between 2018 and 2024. Salim Mohamed Busaidy, a former director at the investment firm, is accused of forging the signature of his co-director, Lamu Governor Issa Timamy, to authorise fraudulent withdrawals, and now faces 120 counts including conspiracy to defraud, theft, and acquiring proceeds of crime. He has pleaded not guilty.

Gachora is not accused of taking part in the theft itself. Instead, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions has argued that NCBA and its CEO failed to detect and report suspicious activity on the account, as required under the Proceeds of Crime and Anti-Money Laundering Act (POCAMLA). NCBA and Gachora, in their petition, argue that the law does not impose personal criminal liability on a bank CEO for alleged reporting lapses, and that the prosecution improperly seeks to shift a corporate regulatory obligation onto an individual with no personal knowledge, act, or intent shown. Their lawyers have also accused the DCI and ODPP of overstepping their constitutional mandate and violating the right to fair administrative action.

Gachora is not the only bank chief caught up in the case. KCB Group’s Paul Russo and Co-operative Bank’s Gideon Muriuki were charged over the same alleged reporting failures and have separately sought, and in Muriuki’s case obtained, similar orders from the High Court halting their prosecution.

According to the orders, the trial court confirmed the status of the conservatory orders on 12th August 2026, with the matter set to return before the presiding judge for further directions later in the year.

Even with the orders, the High Court has yet to determine the substantive question of whether the prosecution can lawfully proceed, and the underlying allegations against Gachora and NCBA remain untested. Until that determination is made, both the bank and its CEO are entitled to the presumption of innocence.

The case has drawn wide attention as a test of how far Kenya’s anti-money laundering framework can be used to hold senior bank executives personally accountable for institutional compliance failures.

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